The Hérouxville statement is becoming known around the world as international media pick up on its manifesto – click on "avis public" if the link isn't hidden behind something else on this rather dodgily scripted site.
posted at 11:15

 
Although the study mentioned here yesterday showed that French is not doing too badly downtown, it also demonstrated that there's a lot of English being used, especially by smaller businesses. The implication is that something must be done about this, but hounding a lot of small business owners has proven not to be a popular or effective move, especially in areas where business owners are well aware they're likely to be serving tourists.
posted at 11:08

 
More on the dirty city (with photos), the failure of various cleanup schemes and a little list of flaws. Usually the fuss about the city's aesthetics comes when the snow retreats, so it's early this year, but Charles Lapointe makes a valid point that it's an attitude, a regular sequence of small acts by everyone, that keeps a city clean, rather than throwing millions of tax dollars at the problem.
posted at 11:01

 
Charles Lapointe, head of Tourism Montreal, says the city is filthy and more should be done to make it tidy for visitors.

He may have a point. But then, do people get excited to visit Paris, Barcelona, Tokyo or Amsterdam because they're clean?
posted at 23:52

 
A study done by the Office de la langue français (PDF) has shown that the use of French is not disappearing in downtown Montreal, as had been feared.
posted at 23:28

 
Pierre Foglia writes a nice tribute to Montreal cyclist Guy Morin, who died last week.
posted at 11:26

 
Another note in the current tune about reasonable accommodation of minorities: workers in the Commission scolaire de Montréal are complaining that Jews and Muslims get more paid holidays per year than other workers do, and now it's becoming an issue.
posted at 11:06

 
Already in 2007 there have been four gang-related murders in Montreal, including one in which the victim was wanted for another killing in 2005.
posted at 10:42

 
Montreal is to keep the head office of the new consolidated paper giant Abitibi Bowater.
posted at 10:38

 
The Canadiens pulled off a win against the Senators after an emotional ceremony honouring one of the team's all-time most successful players. Photo essay and more reminiscences.
posted at 10:06

 
A Montreal artist launches a new suicide prevention site; notes on a new photo book about Sherbrooke Street; Montrealers doing interesting stuff online; back in the days of downhill skiing on the far side of Mount Royal; the transformation of the old Bibliothèque centrale on Sherbrooke East into an arts HQ is going slowly because the repurposing of that space is not a simple one.
posted at 11:33

 
The first item I've seen on the 40th anniversary of Expo 67 and news that the city is proposing turning part of Île Sainte-Hélène into a campsite.
posted at 11:19

 
Ken Dryden's jersey number with the Canadiens will be ceremonially retired tonight, an occasion for retrospection and lots of anecdotes.

In other news of Habs goalies, there's a nice New York Times obit of Gump Worsley today too.
posted at 10:57

 
Apologies if RSS readers of this site have seen a lot of my recent posts twice this weekend. Blogger has shifted this blog to a new posting system – it should make no difference to readers, but it re-sent some posts when the change was made.
posted at 20:49

 
Here's a great site about sixty of the wildflowers found on Mount Royal – at warmer times of year.
posted at 20:48

 
A city cop is facing official censure for a song mocking the reasonable accommodation of minorities.

(I can't find the œuvre on the net – it must be circulating in email. Back-translating from these articles it must go "Accommodation raisonnable, on n'est plus capable" – anyone got it?)
posted at 17:39

 
Spooked by recent financial troubles, UQÀM backs off from various development projects, most notably the Îlot Voyageur, which will mean a different direction for the site opposite the Grande Bibliothèque.
posted at 17:29

 
Gump Worsley, who tended goal for the Canadiens for several of the team's best years in the 1960s, died this weekend after a long illness. He was 77.

Some reminiscences and a retrospective blog entry on Worsley's career.
posted at 16:17

 
Developers and conservationists cannot agree on how to use the remaining green space on Mount Royal, bt at least they are still talking.
posted at 11:58

 
An elderly man's lifetime hoard of books and papers, crammed into a four-room apartment, is labelled hazardous and tidied up.
posted at 13:43

 
The Fête des Neiges has begun over on the islands, running weekends till February 11.
posted at 13:37

 
A bitter editorial piece about Montreal's treatment by various governments in Quebec.
posted at 15:25

 
Details are skimpy, but Google has opened an office here in town and posted job offers, causing a certain amount of buzz about the synergy that may result.
posted at 15:03

 
Four West Island mayors, unhappy with how the Charest government handled municipal demergers, have thrown in their lot with Mario Dumont's ADQ party for the next election.
posted at 14:26

 
A potential multi-million-dollar class action suit against the city of Montreal for not eradicating every ragweed plant on its territory has been dismissed, and quite right too. The city doesn't have total control over the local ecology, and we should not expect it to.
posted at 14:03

 
Quebec puts big money into road repairs, but only 6.5% of the sum being spent this year will go to the island of Montreal.
posted at 11:46

 
The police have received permission to place a dozen security cameras along the Main this summer. Please keep your hands in view.
posted at 11:35

 
The Laval metro extension may open in April, several months ahead of its target date, with the suggestion that Jean Charest would like to ceremonially open it in the midst of an election campaign.
posted at 11:12

 
Interesting bit of vintage scandal connected with the political Johnson family is cleared up, although a photo of Madame would've made the story more interesting.
posted at 11:10

 
The Breakfastblogger blog has a Montreal category in which they've just done a very pictorial report on dim sum for breakfast.
posted at 22:06

 
Upbeat view of tourist Montreal from a gay perspective.
posted at 21:58

 
The city's bill for infrastructure connected with the MUHC superhospital is growing again by millions.
posted at 11:05

 
More on the Bagg Street Shul, with a good photo of the interior.
posted at 10:38

 
The Grande Bibliothèque is to build a permanent perimeter involving barriers, landscaping and a marquee, to make sure falling glass panels don't land on library patrons or passersby. Apparently no more direct solution to the chronic problem has worked.
posted at 10:30

 
Montreal animator Torill Kove is up for a short animation Oscar. It's her second nomination in the category.
posted at 10:17

 
Montreal will host the 2009 NHL all-star game to coincide with the centenary of the Canadiens.
posted at 22:28

 
Mayor Tremblay blames Quebec fiscal policy for the flight to the suburbs and Montreal's need for more revenue.
posted at 12:37

 
A trip to Jean-Talon Market with scruples.
posted at 12:36

 
Today seems to be mostly car news.

The city passed a law against idling vehicles awhile ago, but never enforced it. Now there's more interest in making sure motorists don't do that.

Detailed review of the high points at the Auto Show.

And Ville-Marie is shutting down a number of parking lots it deems illegal, presumably so buildings can be constructed on the lots. But condo sales are way down, so it won't surprise me if we see some of these lots revived as parking spaces under direct city management.
posted at 12:07

 
Orchestra conductor Kent Nagano gives up his second job to focus more on the Montreal Symphony.
posted at 16:53

 
The tobacco laws have persuaded lots of folks that it's too inconvenient to go on smoking, but there are some who aren't deterred, and go outside to smoke even on the coldest days.
posted at 12:53

 
A vivid account of a holdup in a dépanneur in Villeray this weekend.
posted at 12:45

 

Auto-destruction
Originally uploaded by zadcat.

Comment on the current Salon de l'auto...

posted at 12:15

 
The first steps toward real private medicine have been taken with the opening of a private clinic offering surgical procedures.
posted at 12:00

 
Montreal is still a mecca for film and TV location work, but some boroughs are more welcoming than others.
posted at 11:44

 
Nice bit about Maisonneuve's Bain Morgan and some of its habituées.
posted at 14:24

 
Businesses around Saint-Laurent and Ste-Catherine say they won't miss the peep show if it disappears from the neighbourhood.
posted at 14:15

 

Feb. 20, 1972
Originally uploaded by colros.

Wonderful photo of a snowy Ste-Catherine Street in 1972, from Flickr user colros. Worth clicking through and looking at large (click on "all sizes") for the old signs.

posted at 13:45

 
The Mouvement Montréal français is pressing for change on the many English-language business names to be seen around town, as 68% of Quebecers surveyed say they dislike having English names on signs.

It's also the 59th anniversary of Quebec's blue fleur-de-lys flag.
posted at 12:13

 

Chinatown Montreal - Épicerie Sun Hing Grocery
Originally uploaded by martin_uj.

The Épicerie Sun Hing was destroyed by fire Friday night. Photo by Martin Ujlaki on Flickr.

posted at 11:39

 
More on the idea of Place Robert-Bourassa as a solution everyone can live with for the Park Avenue issue. The toponymy folks are expected to speak up next week, but when will Mayor Tremblay address the problem again?
posted at 13:53

 
The city wants to expropriate the peep show at the corner of Saint-Laurent and Sainte-Catherine, to build an eight-storey cultural centre as part of the Quartier des spectacles project.
posted at 13:51

 
A perimeter has been put up around a toxic cloud released after a fire in a chemical plant in Anjou industrial park; a building in Chinatown was destroyed by fire last night.
posted at 13:45

 
Despite a government decree in 2005 that Mount Royal is a protected area, there's an impasse on chopping down further trees and starting more construction on the mountain. Good aerial photo compares Mount Royal in 1931 versus 2002.
posted at 13:39

 
The RCMP is taking very seriously the new FLQ threat against various public targets in the western part of the island. The international press is also fascinated by this home-grown terror tactic.
posted at 19:26

 
More noise about the notion of creating a Place Robert-Bourassa around Park and Pine, and a couple of other possible solutions. urbanphoto.net also covers this story with some interesting photos of the intersection from past and present.
posted at 12:01

 
Another paean for Schwartz's; a petition has been launched to try to save the Spectrum; Concordia unveils its new logo; the return of dance halls.
posted at 11:52

 
The world's oldest woman, Julie Winnefred Bertrand, died yesterday in Montreal. She was 115 years old.
posted at 11:23

 
A somewhat sad piece pondering the impending loss of the Spectrum.
posted at 21:34

 
Montreal has been losing about 20,000 people a year to the suburbs, especially young families.
posted at 21:30

 
Sketches and notes left by Kimveer Gill show he considered an attack on the University of Montreal and several other schools before settling on Dawson.
posted at 21:16

 
Retro shock here: the RCMP have received an FLQ threat to the west end of Montreal and to businesses they deem not attentive enough to the language laws.
posted at 21:08

 
Women, especially single mothers, are hit harder economically by housing costs, and another call for affordable living space is heard from the Conseil des Montréalaises.
posted at 18:09

 
Yesterday was cold, but it was nothing special given what January can dish out.
posted at 18:04

 
Tomorrow is the start of the Montreal auto show, till January 28. Dossier here and official site here.
posted at 14:02

 
The toponymy commission is said to be working on a compromise for the Park Avenue/Robert-Bourassa impasse.
posted at 13:48

 
Quebec is to accord new taxing powers to Montreal; it only remains to be seen what form they will take.
posted at 13:26

 
The Rivière des Prairies has had an ice jam again and has threatened to flood the northern edge of the city, but reports also say the problem is resolving.
posted at 21:04

 
Citizens' groups condemn the new traffic plan proposed for the English superhospital project south of Vendome metro. They have a site that explains the problems in detail.
posted at 21:00

 
Kent Nagano is to be named an honorary citizen of Montreal tomorrow; the Café Campus is celebrating its 40th anniversary with special events in early February; the Museum of Fine Arts is opening an exhibit of newly acquired prints by names like Rembrandt, Matisse and Picasso.
posted at 20:56

 
The toponymy commission officially delays their decision on changing Parc and Bleury to Avenue Robert-Bourassa. One writer makes an eloquent proposal that the newly remade intersection of Park and Pine be turned into Place Robert-Bourassa, not a bad idea and one which would also allow the mayor to save face in both directions.
posted at 20:38

 
In the panic surrounding the first news of the shooting at Dawson in September, police initially feared a terror attack on Montreal's institutions. It seems an unlikely conclusion, but if you've been training for terrorism, terrorism is the conclusion you're likely to jump to.
posted at 14:56

 
There's no word yet from the toponymy commission about the fate of Park Avenue.
posted at 20:16

 
California freeze is expected to drive up prices for fruit and vegetables here. Scurvy, anyone?
posted at 19:19

 
Richard Desjardins is to be guest of honour at the Voix des Amériques festival which takes place February 2-9.
posted at 19:17

 
A Muslim school in Ville St-Laurent that teaches kids from kindergarten to grade 11 was vandalized last night. The police aren't treating it as a hate crime – yet.
posted at 19:14

 
Yesterday's snow almost seems like a novelty, starting so late in the season, causing road problems as drivers adjust to winter conditions. There's now some hope that conditions will allow the Fête des neiges to take place outdoors later this month.
posted at 10:55

 
The indie film Sur la trace d'Igor Rizzi is getting some buzz about its take on Montreal in winter.
posted at 10:36

 
The Journal de Montréal survey finds that 59% of Quebecers admit to being racist, and it shouldn't surprise us that it's not only Québécois de souche who hold negative notions about other cultures. The whole dossier is linked from here.
posted at 10:31

 
Normally it wouldn't be news that we expect 15-20 cm of snow on a mid-January day, but as the first serious snowfall of the year it's worth mentioning. And then we may get record cold temperatures in a day or two.

Did I hear somebody complaining we weren't getting a real winter?
posted at 10:19

 
Saint-Léonard is still an Italian enclave, but its face is changing. Also a look at various businesses in the area.
posted at 10:08

 
An overview of the current situation in town for skateboarding.
posted at 21:15

 
The MSO (n.b. site plays music) is to perform a tribute to Roméo Dallaire this week, although apparently it's a Beethoven piece with poetic narration, not a new work.
posted at 12:48

 
Now that the cold weather is here, some folks aren't happy (although we can hope that the -280 in that item is a typo); blue-collar workers were diligently salting the streets yesterday in Rosemont, although there was little ice to be seen.
posted at 11:27

 
Jean-Pierre Ferland gave his farewell concert last night at the Bell Centre.
posted at 11:20

 
Necessary infrastructure work will cost the city $25 million as the two superhospital projects materialize. Grumbling about duplication of services between the two projects also continues.
posted at 15:48

 
A Flickr site for vintage Park Avenue photos.
posted at 12:11

 
A fire destroyed the Lombardi restaurant on Duluth yesterday, narrowly missing the neighbouring Académie resto, rebuilt after destruction by fire in 1999.
posted at 12:02

 
The Journal de Montréal is doing a broad survey on whether Quebecers are becoming more intolerant of those from other cultures. The questionnaire is here but is not interactive.
posted at 11:39

 
There are no outdoor hockey rinks usable in Montreal today, but colder temperatures are finally blowing in this weekend and may provide the necessary freeze.
posted at 11:30

 
Public signage has to be in French, but the law doesn't say the French has to be correct.
posted at 11:00

 
Kristian has an excellent but saddening piece about the history of dolphins in Montreal in his blog this week.
posted at 17:13

 
Readers have sent me advance notice on the arrival of Gunther Von Hagens' controversial plastified body show, Body Worlds 2, at the Montreal Science Centre this summer, and of the Walt Disney Artistic Sources Exhibition at the Fine Arts museum from March till June.
posted at 17:02

 
Defenders of Park Avenue are clinging to hope that the toponymy commission will reject the change of the street name to Avenue Robert-Bourassa. The commission meets next Tuesday.
posted at 16:58

 
Police have rounded up two networks of credit card counterfeiters in different parts of town.
posted at 15:48

 
Quebec is considering a $1-billion plan to rebuild the Turcot interchange completely. Another option would be to refit the existing structures. which would theoretically cost "only" half a billion.
posted at 15:37

 
The city is totally cashing in on traffic tickets after assigning 133 new police agents to do nothing else. Figures here.
posted at 11:09

 
It may be too late to bewail the loss of the Spectrum in favour of "new retail space and a 15- to 17-storey office tower" and with no new performance venue included in the development.
posted at 11:05

 
A woman is trying to get permission for a class-action suit over psychiatric experiments carried out here, but partially funded by the CIA as part of their MKULTRA brainwashing program.
posted at 11:00

 
The city police force is going to reorganize this year after a ten-year experiment with community policing, changing to fewer stations but more police on the ground. Soon it will be possible to call in complaints on a website.
posted at 10:37

 
Montreal artist Cesar Saez plans to build a giant airship shaped like a banana and release it over Texas next year. Some people are not exactly thrilled that Saez has received grant money to develop a project which, as they point out, may well be quashed by the U.S. from concerns about security. A Texan view.
posted at 10:44

 
City's emergency wards are overwhelmed as the epidemic of gastroenteritis keeps hospital beds full. I suppose this is evidence that it isn't necessarily due to extreme cold or icy streets that hospitals get busy in wintertime.
posted at 10:35

 
The proliferation of business signs in English is protected by international trademark law, a point that's come up again in the recent decision by Esso not to rename its gas station stores On The Run in Quebec. More stories, on businesses that spawned French business names and one that hasn't.
posted at 10:28

 
The venerable Spectrum on Ste-Catherine is going to be demolished so a new entertainment complex can be built on the block.
posted at 10:21

 
A panic at Concordia's Loyola campus fizzled yesterday as it turned out there was no bomb and no gunman.
posted at 10:05

 
Saku Koivu got his 500th career point last night as the Canadiens beat the Thrashers 4-2.
posted at 09:58

 
Yesterday's bit of snow was here and gone in minutes; the bike path on the Jacques-Cartier bridge is being reopened so cyclists can take advantage of the autumnal weather.
posted at 10:22

 
Halfway through the season, despite some mediocre recent games, the overall performance of the Canadiens is at its best in 16 years.
posted at 09:58

 
More on the gastrointestinal bug: some hospitals are cancelling procedures and asking visitors to stay away as both patients and staff have been afflicted; there's relatively little influenza this year by comparison, but the same method of prevention is recommended for both as the bug spreads in the population: wash your hands.
posted at 09:55

 
The driver responsible for a fatal hit-and-run late last week has turned himself in.
posted at 11:20

 
There is no ice on the St. Lawrence this year, and fishermen and boat enthusiasts are pursuing their activities on the water.
posted at 11:18

 
Defenders of Park Avenue are preparing to fight at the toponymy commission and, if necessary, as far as the Supreme Court.
posted at 11:07

 
The issue of who should pay for the deficit from building the metro to Laval is not close to resolution, and will grumble through the media for the next few months.
posted at 11:06

 
A man died trying to steal copper from a hydro pylon after touching a high-tension wire.
posted at 11:02

 
Interesting obit for fashion illustrator who worked most of her career in Montreal; a look back at 2006 in art shows.
posted at 10:48

 
The wave of gastroenteritis that's afflicted the Canadiens and has been particularly virulent in hospitals and old folks' homes is expected to worsen, especially if our weather reverts to more usual winter temperatures.
posted at 14:11

 
We're close to the 80th anniversary of the Laurier Palace cinema fire which killed 77 kids on a Sunday afternoon in 1927 and led to the banning of kids under 16 from Quebec cinemas until 1961.
posted at 14:02

 
A nurse going home from work was knocked down and killed this week by a hit-and-run driver, leaving two grown-up kids hoping to learn who did it.
posted at 13:58

 
Celebrity fugitive Myriam Bédard is released on bail and joins Anne-Marie Péladeau in this blog's list of pointlessly famous people who get into the media for pulling stunts that would see an ordinary citizen tossed into the clink without a second thought.
posted at 13:39

 
A good editorial piece on issues in Quebec and in Montreal that are not going away, and will certainly spawn news stories throughout 2007.
posted at 13:36

 
Interesting interview with a high-profile photographer; a Gazette pdf file on eating in Montreal; lots of the Canadiens are sick going into a game against the Rangers tonight (although the CBC ought to know that gastro isn't "flu" – the flu's a respiratory illness); fancy tea houses and tea merchants in town.
posted at 17:01

 
City workers are patching potholes and cleaning up as if for spring while waiting for winter, but private snow-clearing firms collect on their contracts whether snow falls or not.

Meantime, the nature parks remain hiking paths rather than ski trails, and bird and animal species are missing their normal hibernation cues as the weather stays well above the norm.
posted at 13:17

 
This weekend may see some record-breaking temperatures as golf courses stay open in southern parts of Quebec. No wonder global warming is a phrase on everyone's lips.
posted at 10:59

 
Sasha Trudeau's wife has given birth to a new Pierre Trudeau, although she didn't manage to hold out till Christmas as is the family tradition.
posted at 10:52

 
Divers/Cité has decided to make the Gay Pride parade a separate ev